Animal Instincts
by Runaway Scribe
Summary: Harry Potter goes into the Forbidden Forest and is attacked by a mysterious beast. When he wakes up, he finds himself obsessed with Draco Malfoy, his sworn enemy. Will The-Boy-Who-Lived give into his Animal Instincts?
1. Chapter 1

Harry Potter groaned as he sat down at his last class of the day: Potions. He really wasn't in the mood for Snape's ever-so-witty sarcasm or Malfoy's classroom disruptions. Harry still wished that Dumbledore had convinced Slughorn to be the Potions Master instead of Snape.

He was grateful that he had been partnered with Neville Longbottom, even though that probably meant a bad grade for his potion. At least Neville wasn't a very talkative person

Snape's voice interrupted his thoughts.

"Turn to page 225; we will be continuing our last lesson."

Harry was obediently pulling out his 6th Year Potions textbook and opening to the page, when he knocked over his inkwell. Snickers erupted from the Slytherins and Snape seemed to be delighted at Harry's misfortune.

"Well, Mr. Potter, it seems you're acting even clumsier than your partner, the infamous Longbottom. I think it'd be best if you switch places with Mr. Goyle."

Goyle grunted and got up to move. Harry scourgified the ink spill and gathered his books to move as well. He cast Neville a pitying look, before sitting next to the one and only, Draco Malfoy.

"Nice going Potter, are you going to be that incompetent on the Quidditch field?" Malfoy sneered.

"Just shut up Malfoy, I'm not in the mood."

"You can't order me to shut up, you filthy half-blood. Why don't you just go shag the Mudblood?"

Malfoy said this quietly enough so that Snape couldn't hear from the storeroom, where he was collecting the potion ingredients for the demonstration.

"I swear Malfoy, one more word, and I'll end up in Azkaban for murder. Maybe I'll get a room with your father."

"How dare you speak of my father!" Malfoy hissed, "at least my parents weren't killed because of their failure of a son."

It was ironic enough, that at that very moment, the Dark Lord was contemplating a way to punish the Malfoy family for their failures.

Harry clenched his fists as his anger finally caught up with him. If Malfoy wouldn't willingly shut up, then Harry would just have to personally make him. His fist flew towards Malfoy and hit him squarely in the nose, making a satisfying _crunch_.

Malfoy recoiled but then flew at Harry in a rage, swinging a punch at his face, and making contact with his jaw. Harry's neck snapped to the side and, disorientated, he gave Malfoy a vicious kick to the ribs, effectively knocking him over.

The blonde boy broke his fall with an outstretched hand, and then whipped out his wand to give Harry another permanent scar on his face.

"Expelliarmus," Snape's monotone voice broke through the boys' testosterone-induced haze.

Malfoy's wand flew out of his hand, and Harry backed away from him, realizing that everyone in the room was staring at him. Blood was pouring out of Malfoy's nose and he was clutching his chest in pain. Harry was putting a hand up to gingerly touch his black-eye.

"Detention, a week of cleaning cauldrons, for both of you," Snape spoke.

Malfoy grew indignant, "That's not fair! Potter started it; I shouldn't have to suffer through a week of detention with him!"

Harry wisely decided to stay quiet.

Snape glanced back at Malfoy, "If you don't want to have a week of detention with him, than you can both have just a single detention with Caretaker Filch, tonight."

Malfoy took the hint and closed his mouth, not wanting to aggravate his professor any more. Anyone would prefer a week with Snape to one day with Filch, the twisted Caretaker of Hogwarts.

"Mr. Potter, you will clean up this mess. Mr. Crabbe, if you would be so kind as to escort Draco to the Infirmary?"

Harry wasn't complaining about his lack of medical attention, it wasn't like he had never gotten a black eye from Dudley before. Harry was just glad that Snape had given Malfoy a detention too. Although, he was a bit apprehensive about the detention with Filch, but it wasn't the first time Malfoy's big mouth had gotten someone in trouble.

* * *

Harry Potter shoveled his dinner down his throat faster than even Ron Weasley could, and then broke out into a run to get to Filch's office on time. He had been late because Hermione had insisted on him going to the Infirmary to get his black-eye healed before dinner. Luna Lovegood had been more than willing to fix it herself, but Hermione thought that that wouldn't have exactly been the best idea.

He skidded to a halt in front of Filch's door and almost collided with his friend, Hagrid.

"What are you doing here, Hagrid?"

We're goin' into the Forest to get some of a special tree for yer' Herbology professor."

Harry gave him a confused look, which prompted the man to open the office door. Professor Sprout, Filch, and Malfoy came out.

"This is ridiculous," Malfoy said, "going into the Forest as a punishment is exactly what we did as first-years, and it didn't work out well then either."

Malfoy did have a point, but Harry didn't want to admit it.

"You'll be going in with Hagrid and his mangy dog," Filch gave them a rotten grin, "I thought it'd be a fitting detention."

"Why are we going?" Harry asked.

Professor Sprout answered, "I need a leaf sample from a tree in the Forest known as an Exodus Tree. It has very useful properties, but taking anything more than a single leaf isn't advisable. They are very rare trees, but when left alone, they can live forever. They thrive off of the moonlight, and have a pale, luminescent glow to them."

"How do you know that there's one of those in the Forbidden Forest?"

"Professor Hagrid had noticed some unusual markings on the dead body of a wolf he had found in the Forest. I took a look at it and deduced that it could only have been a Shadowclaw."

Harry didn't even need to ask her what that was, she continued on immediately.

"A Shadowclaw is a very dark creature. The only way it can survive is by feeding off of an Exodus Tree, although it can sustain itself on meat for a few weeks if it's forced to search for another tree to leech off of. They are very protective of their trees and if they sense something trying to take too much of the tree, they will kill it.'

"No wizard or witch has ever been known to survive a Shadowclaw attack. The Shadowclaw jumps on to its prey, latching on to it with 6 razor-sharp, extendable claws on their front paws. They make 6 neat incisions along the victim's skin that turn black as the poison is secreted. Then, the Shadowclaw rips the prey's throat out with its teeth. It's an extremely painful death. No Shadowclaw has ever been caught, due to their speed, strength, agility, and immunity to locating spells."

Malfoy exploded, "SO WHY THE BLOODY HELL ARE WE GOING AFTER ITS TREE?"

"The Shadowclaw is perfectly docile as long as the tree isn't damaged, you simply have to find the tree and collect the sample. You'll be as safe as you would normally be in the Forbidden Forest."

Which isn't very safe, thought Harry. Then again, they had survived the Forest when they were first-years, and Voldemort was lurking inside of it, drinking unicorn blood from the back of Quirrel's head. Then Ron and Harry had gone in again second-year, even when all they had was a shoddy car to protect themselves against giant, ravenous spiders.

Hagrid handed Harry a lamp and then took one for himself. Then, the half-giant ushered them though the hallways and towards his hut.

"I've got Fang locked up all alone in 'm house, the poor thing," Hagrid said.

"This is barbaric," Malfoy muttered under his breath as Hagrid let Fang out.

"Okay now, we'll go ter the place I foun' the wolf."

Hagrid turned around and started walking into the Forest, lantern in hand, with Fang trotting by his side. Harry began to follow with the other lamp, and Malfoy, rolling his eyes, did too.

They weaved in and out of the trees for what seemed like an endless amount of time before they came to a halt in the center of a small clearing.

"Well, 'ere we are. Foun' it righ' 'ere."

"So the tree is probably nearby," Harry said, "we could split up and search in different directions."

"No way," Malfoy said, "I'm not going in by myself."

"Fine, Hagrid, you can go that way with Fang," Harry pointed, "and Malfoy and I can go the other way. If anyone finds it, we'll send up green sparks, and if we're in danger, we'll send up red."

Hagrid nodded his agreement, and patted his pocket that contained the umbrella with the broken pieces of his wand. He could manage sending some sparks in the air. Harry handed Malfoy the lantern and then pulled out his wand. With one look back at his enemy, Harry bravely set forward on his path into the forest.

They were walking for quite a while in silence before Malfoy spoke up.

"Hey, Potter, we've been walking for enough already, Sprout is probably just a nutter, there's no such thing as an Exodus tree. Why don't we sit down for a bit and wait for that oaf and his dog to give up."

Harry looked around at the dark trees surrounding him. He shuddered when he realized that he had never even asked Professor Sprout what the Shadowclaw looked like.

"No, we can't just stop the search. Sitting down would probably just make us more vulnerable anyway."

"You never listen to reason, Potter, that's your problem, your skull is thicker than Weasley's."

"Don't bring Ron into this."

"Ooh, you're such a brave Gryffindor Harry," Malfoy mocked in a high-pitched voice, "can I feel your muscles?"

Harry refused to rise to the bait; he just kept trudging along, navigating by the light of the lantern in Malfoy's hand. Harry looked down just in time to notice a root in his path and hopped to get over it.

"Malfoy, watch out, there's a-"

Harry was too late to tell him though, and the Malfoy heir went crashing to the ground, face-first. Harry, acting on instinct, reached out to catch Malfoy, and caught a hold of his arm right before he hit the ground. The lantern, however fell with force and shattered, the flame dying almost instantly.

"You have such a hero complex Potter, and now we have no light," Draco complained haughtily, as he jerked his arm out of Harry's grip.

"You're acting like this is my fault!"

"Well it is, you should have grabbed the lantern!"

"Yeah, don't bother with a thank you, Malfoy," Harry muttered.

Malfoy sneered, but then something seemed to catch his attention directly behind Harry. "Potter, look! Do you see that?"

Harry turned around and then to make sure, pushed the bridge of his glasses up against his face. There was no mistaking it in the complete darkness; up ahead, there was a faint glowing coming from inside a huddle of trees.

"Lumos!" Harry's wand lit up, although it was much dimmer than before.

"Come on, it has to be in there," Harry motioned for Malfoy to follow.

"Are you insane?"

"Fine, you can stay here by yourself, Malfoy."

Harry started towards the trees and, as he knew he would, Malfoy followed.

They both watched the ground this time, to avoid the rocks and roots in their path. This, however, did not prevent Harry from walking into low branches. Branches that always ended up snapping back and hitting Malfoy in the face with much more force.

Finally, they came to the source of the light. It was a clearing in the thicket, almost perfectly circular, and the surrounding trees look as if they were almost bowing to the glowing tree in the center. The Exodus tree wasn't as tall as the other trees, but looked as majestic as a tree could possibly look. Its leaves had a shimmery brightness to them, but looked fragile as they wavered in the wind. The branches looked strong and limber, with an appealing symmetry. The trunk of the tree was thick and the bark was as smooth to the touch as chiseled marble.

"It's beautiful," whispered Harry.

"Alright, enough with the staring, Potter, I want to get out of here. Just one leaf shouldn't be so hard."

Harry pointed his wand up at the sky and shot up green sparks, to alert Hagrid that they had found the Exodus tree. Malfoy walked up to the tree and placed a hand on the trunk.

"Hold on Malfoy! We should wait for Hagrid."

Malfoy snorted, "Don't be daft, Potter, what's a banished half-giant going to do?"

Harry clenched his fists and once again fought the urge to take the bait. Malfoy smirked and stood on his tiptoes to rip a tree off of a lower branch.

"Damnit!" He swore.

"What?" Harry came closer to examine Malfoy's hands.

The leaf had apparently been grabbed with too much force, and it had dissolved in Malfoy's hand, leaving a glittery residue. Malfoy frowned and then wiped it off on Harry's sleeve.

"Let me just grab it more carefully this time," Malfoy said, reaching up.

"But you already took a leaf and destroyed it too! Professor Sprout said just one!"

"Come on Potter, do you really think one more leaf is going to do us any harm? And besides, this little Shadowclaw thing is probably just an old wives tail to prevent people from making the Exodus tree extinct. Are we really going to let it scare us into going back empty-handed?"

Harry was still apprehensive, but didn't protest when Malfoy reached up again and, more delicately this time, ripped a leaf off of the tree by its stem.

"There, Potter, you made it seem like it was going to be a big deal, but once again, I was ri-"

A low growl stopped Malfoy cold. Harry tensed up and felt a presence behind him. Ever so slowly, and barely visible, he started rotating his body towards the source of sound, he closed his eyes and turned his head along with his body until he knew that the creature would be in his view. He opened his eyes, still moving slowly, and stared straight into the red eyes of a beast to fearsome to be real.

Its body looked completely black against the glow of the tree, its head had piercing eyes, and it had fangs whiter than snow, poised to kill. The Shadowclaw's ears twitched, and it looked as if it was trying to decide if the two boys were food or not.

Malfoy whimpered and the Shadowclaw fixed its gaze on him, taking a step forwards. It bared its teeth, twitched its whiskers, and swished its tail behind its body. Harry thought that this beast looked like a black panther had mated with a saber-tooth tiger. The creature took another step forwards, its gaze completely fixed on Malfoy now. Harry glanced to the side and realized that Malfoy had turned around to see the creature as well. They didn't have very long before the Shadowclaw would decide to eat one of them.

Once again, true to his hero complex, Harry did something impulsive. He whipped around and shoved Malfoy, sending him hurtling backwards to land on his arse a few meters behind Harry. Right as he did this, the beast growled and lunged for Harry, seeing him as the immediate threat. The Boy-Who-Lived barely had enough time to turn around to see the Shadowclaw propel itself through the air on its powerful hind legs.

Malfoy screamed as the beast landed on Harry's chest, knocking him over. Harry's head cracked against the ground with a sickening thud, and he could feel the blood pouring out of the deep gash in the back of his head. His entire body groaned with the impact and he was staring straight into the red eyes of the Shadowclaw.

Its eyes narrowed almost vindictively as Harry started to struggle to get out from under the beast. Its sharp claws extended instantly, coming close to piercing his heart. Harry could feel them breaking through his skin and tearing through his muscles, he could feel the poison seeping into his bloodstream. His grasp on his wand was loosening, and he started convulsing, having seizure after seizure. He felt his world start to blacken, and he sputtered as his mouth filled with blood. The Shadowclaw was looming over him, fangs bared, ready to go for the kill and tear out Harry's throat.

"INCENDIO!" Malfoy's voice rang out in Harry's mind.

A burst of flame came from the tip of Malfoy's wand. It was aimed straight for the Shadowclaw and the thing ROARED as the flames licked its skin. Harry could feel the heat of the flames so close to his face. It recoiled off of Harry, the claws hurting Harry even more as they ripped out of his chest. The Shadowclaw hissed and retreated into the woods, with speed and agility to rival a Firebolt.

Harry's world was still fading as he saw Malfoy point his wand up and shoot red sparks into the sky. Hagrid would already be coming, thanks to the green sparks Harry sent earlier. The half-giant would just hurry up, now that he saw the red sparks.

Harry tried to fight the sleep coming over him, and listen to Malfoy's mumbled words. He knew that the Shadowclaw could come back, and he knew that there was a chance that he'd never wake up if he gave in to the peaceful dream-like state threatening to pull him in. A loud bellow from a nearby Hagrid let Harry know that help was coming. A sense of security washed over him, and unable to fight it anymore, the Boy-Who-Lived let his eyes close. A peaceful sleep came over him, and even Malfoy's high-pitched screams could not wake him up.


	2. Chapter 2

"Draco, wait up!" Harry laughed, running across the field to tackle his boyfriend.

"Harry!" Draco yelped, falling over into the soft grass.

"You smell so nice," Harry moaned into Draco's neck, "I just want to hold onto you forever."

"You're heavy," Draco giggled, straining his neck to kiss Harry on the nose.

"Draco?" Harry said, lifting his head from Draco's neck to look into his eyes.

"Yes, Harry?"

"I think… I think I love you."

Harry kept looking at Draco, hoping for a reply that wouldn't break his heart.

Draco frowned, "I administered some pepper-up potion."

"What?" Harry asked, not understanding.

Draco continued, "He should be waking up soon.

"Draco? Stop it! You're scaring me."

"He was having very fitful dreams."

_Draco, Draco, Draco, Draco, Draco_. Harry kept repeating this to himself, as if it were a mantra. There was something terribly wrong.

* * *

"Mr. Potter?" Madame Pomfrey looked at the sleeping form of the boy on the Infirmary bed.

"Draco! Can you still hear me?" The boy cried out in his sleep.

"Mr. Potter…" Madame Pomfrey walked over to wake him up.

The result was instantaneous, as soon as she touched his arm, his eyes shot open and he sat up in his bed.

"WHERE IS HE?" The boy growled, his eyes a frightening shade of red.

"Mr. Potter, I'm afraid you were dreaming."

Harry's eyes widened, and turned back to their normal, green color.

"Yeah, dreaming… must've been… just a dream."

Harry noticed that both Snape and Professor Sprout were standing near the doorway. Snape was staring at him with a curious gaze. Harry grew self-conscious and pulled the covers over his body, realizing that all he was wearing were his boxers.

"So…" Harry said, "What happened?"

He looked at Madam Pomfrey, hoping for an answer, but instead, Snape answered.

"You were attacked by a very dark creature in the Forbidden Forest, a Shadowclaw. It's been speculated that Shadowclaws are afraid of fire, so that spell most likely saved your life. Professor Hagrid carried you back to Hogwarts, where Madame Pomfrey had to pump as much of the poison out of you as possible. You are the first wizard to ever survive a Shadowclaw attack, so we aren't very sure if there will be any side-effects or not."

Harry groaned and leaned back on his pillow. At least his head wasn't throbbing anymore. He looked down and realized that he had six black dots on his chest, right below his shoulders. They were each about the size of the tip of his index finger.

"I tried to heal you as best as I could," Madame Pomfrey said in a pitying tone, "but the claws' entry marks are permanent."

Harry frowned. The Shadowclaw might as well of carved the word 'FREAK' into his chest.

"Is that all? Or is it like a werewolf, and I'll turn into a Shadowclaw every full moon?"

Snape twitched at the word 'werewolf.'

"No, Mr. Potter, Shadowclaws do not transform at specific times. They are born, not made."

"Born? How are they born?"

Snape glared at him like Harry had just asked him where babies came from.

"Once males come of mating age, they kill their fathers and take over the home Exodus tree. Once females come of mating age they leave the tree to go searching for a mate. If they find a mature male that has a secured Exodus tree, they mate. The mother always has only one offspring after carrying the cub for 3-4 months, and dies subsequently after. The male is left to take care of the cub until it matures."

Harry nodded; Snape seemed to be even more knowledgeable about this then Professor Sprout was.

"The reason the Shadowclaw in our forest has been relatively passive until now, is that the longer a male Shadowclaw goes without mating, the more aggressive it gets. That particular Shadowclaw is completely isolated in our Forest, so it's getting more and more violent. The beast's primal instincts will take over, and it's likely to go insane and die alone."

Harry took this information in. The Forest wouldn't be getting less and less safe until the Shadowclaw died. He looked at Professor Sprout, who hadn't said anything this entire time.

"So, did Malfoy have the leaf with him?"

"Yes," she said, speaking up, "I hand delivered it to some of my old colleagues. They were studying at St. Mungo's and are now doing extensive research on the Exodus tree and its special properties. There's a popular belief that Exodus trees had extraordinary healing properties. Not for the body, but for the mind. They are going to try and learn how to breed Exodus trees in captivity, and to harvest them without the interference of Shadowclaws. This leaf sample could help save thousands of lives, if not more."

Harry forced himself to give a weak smile. The stupid scars on his chest were there due to him saving lives, just like the one on his forehead.

"Can I leave now?" Harry cast hopeful eyes at Madame Pomfrey, "I feel fine."

"Well…" Madame Pomfrey hesitated, "I suppose you've stayed here for long enough, and classes just ended, so you'll probably want to talk to your friends."

"Thanks!" Harry grinned, excited, "but can I get my clothes first?"

"Of course, the house-elves left them on the chair by that corner," Madame Pomfrey said, escorting the two professors out, to give Harry some privacy.

Harry got up and walked towards the pile. He was excited to see his friends, but there was someone else that he was just as, if not more, anxious to talk to.

* * *

"Harry, you're okay!"

As soon as Harry Potter walked into the Gryffindor common room, he was bombarded with hugs, slaps on the back, and lots of questions.

"What'd it look like?"

"It was dark, big, and had sharp teeth and claws," Harry answered Seamus.

"Did you really throw yourself in front of it to save Malfoy?" asked Colin Creevey.

"Yeah," Harry replied, "but Dra- I mean Malfoy, did cast an incendio to get it off of me."

"That little death-eater scum," sneered some 7th year, "trust him use a dark spell like that."

Harry growled, he wasn't sure why, but he assumed it was because everyone was crowding around him.

"You okay there, Harry?" Dean asked.

"Fine, I'm fine, I just need to talk to Ron and Hermione in private."

Ron, who had been standing next to Harry, nodded, and then led the way up to the 6th year boys' dorm, where they could talk in peace.

As soon as the door closed, Harry flopped down on his bed.

"Finally, it's quiet."

"We were so worried Harry," Hermione said, "Madame Pomfrey wouldn't let us in to see you."

"Yeah," Ron agreed, "she wouldn't let anyone in, 'cept for Dumbledore."

"She said that you were having bad dreams."

"Were they about Voldemort?"

"No…" Harry began, "I kept… well there was this one dream that I…"

"What Harry?" Hermione asked, "You can tell us."

"Fine, I'll tell you… I kept having dreams about Draco Malfoy."

"What? That little prick couldn't scare you!" said Ron.

"No, they weren't… bad dreams. I was… kind of happy. And now I can't stop thinking about him. It's driving me insane."

"Maybe you fancy blokes!" said Ron, "I have an uncle who likes men, he lives in the States though."

"Maybe it's because he was with you in the forest," suggested Hermione, "do you feel any different than you did before you were attacked in the Forest?"

"No. Well, not really. Sorta, I guess… maybe."

"Maybe you should ask to talk to him in the Great Hall." said Hermione.

"Harry," Ron began, "Malfoy isn't exactly the nicest guy, and I don't think he'd be very welcoming of you if you asked to talk to him."

"I'm probably just hungry, once I get some food and sleep, I'll be feeling okay again."

"Alright then, mate, I'll meet you down at the Great Hall. Unless you want me to wait up."

"Nah," Harry replied, "I'm going to take a shower really quick. I'll see you guys there."

They left the room and Harry sat up, cradling his head between his hands. Draco was probably the last person in Hogwarts he should be thinking about like this. But Harry's mind's feeble protests were no match for his physical needs.

* * *

Harry walked into the Great Hall, feeling a lot more refreshed after his shower. Ron motioned for Harry to sit next to him, so Harry did, and ended up facing towards the Slytherin table. His eyes zeroed in on Draco almost immediately. Harry brought a cup of pumpkin juice to his lips, watching Draco do it too. He paid attention to the way Draco took small sips before patting his mouth with his napkin.

"Harry, can you pass the turkey?" Ron said, motioning to a plate on Harry's right.

"Oh yeah, sure," Harry replied, snapping his focus back to his own table.

He lifted the plate up and set it next to Ron, taking a piece for himself as he did so. Harry realized just how hungry he was, and started shoveling heaps of food onto his plate. Halfway through his mashed potatoes, Harry glanced up and noticed that Draco was staring at him. The blonde boy blushed, sneered, and then looked away, in that order.

Harry forced himself to tear his wandering eyes off of the Slytherin's body and get back to eating his mashed potatoes. He couldn't help but feel that sooner or later, he would need to confront Draco.

* * *

Harry held back after his friends had finished eating their dinners. He told them not to wait up for him, which caused Hermione to cast him a knowing glance. He put his face back in his pumpkin juice and pretended not to notice. A few moments later, as Harry had been hoping, Draco got up to make his way out of the Great Hall. Even better, his lumbering buddies, Crabbe and Goyle, were staying back to eat more. So Draco would be all alone.

Harry closed his eyes and counted to ten before getting up and leaving the Great Hall too. He could see Draco up ahead, going towards the dungeons. Draco was still carrying his book bag, so he must have not gone back to his dorms after class ended. An idea popped up into Harry's head, one that he had seen the other boys use on girls they wanted to talk alone with.

Right as Draco rounded the corner, Harry cast a nonverbal _diffindo_, causing Draco's bag to rip open, and all of his books to fall out. The blonde boy swore, and knelt down to pick his stuff up.

"Need some help with that?"

Harry walked up to Draco and knelt beside him, helping him round up his stray pieces of parchment.

Draco eyed him suspiciously, "The Gryffindor Common Room isn't this way."

"Well fine then, I'll admit it, I followed you."

Draco scrambled to his feet, taking his bag with him.

"Why?"

"I needed to talk to you," Harry answered, slowly standing as well.

Harry took a step forward, and Draco instinctively took a step back, until he was up against a wall. From this position, Harry towered over him.

"Look, Potter, I don't know what your deal is, but you're getting way too close."

"Please, Draco, call me Harry."

Draco gulped and then seemed to regain his nerve.

"Well what'd you want to talk about anyway? I need to get somewhere."

"I was going to thank you."

"Thank me?"

"For casting the fire spell. I thought it was a very brave thing to do, even if was a dark spell."

"Great, Potter, am I supposed to thank you for your stupid hero complex? Or can I leave now?"

"Don't be so infantile, Draco."

"Stop calling me Draco!"

"That's your given name isn't it?"

Harry reached up to twirl a lock of Draco's hair around his fingers, and that's when the Slytherin snapped.

"Alright, Potter, have a nice night, you nutter," Draco sneered, and forcefully pushed past Harry, walking quickly in the direction of his Common Room.

Harry stared after him until Draco turned a corner and disappeared from his view. He shook his head and tried to clear his thoughts. He still needed a good night's sleep, Harry supposed, as he turned around and walked back to his Common Room. In the morning, he'd feel a lot better. Harry would probably forget all about this, and never give Draco Malfoy another thought again.


	3. Chapter 3

The hairs on the back of Draco's neck stood up as he felt someone staring at him. He failed to resist the urge to turn around and saw Potter staring right back at him. Potter flashed a smile with his blinding white teeth, and Draco turned away quickly, trying to pretend he hadn't even seen the boy's goofy grin.

It had been exactly a week since the last time the Slytherins had double potions with the Gryffindors, and Potter still hadn't said a word to Draco. The blonde boy had a feeling that Potter had been biding his time. Each day his gaze grew more and more intense, and Draco was almost afraid to get caught in it.

Mercifully, Snape dismissed the class and Draco hurried out of the room, not wanting to spend another minute with Potter.

"Draco!" a voice said behind him.

Draco's heart stopped beating for the split second his brain took to recognize that the voice was female.

"Why are you walking so fast?" Pansy Parkinson asked.

Draco shook his head, "I'm not walking fast."

Pansy gave a sickeningly sweet smile and pushed him up against a wall with dainty fingers. The move vaguely reminded him of Potter, but Pansy wasn't nearly as towering.

"Have you been avoiding me, Draco?"

"No, I've just been busy."

"Busy with what?" she lowered her voice, "stuff for You-Know-Who?"

"Uh… yeah, important things, he said no one else could do it but me…"

Her eyes widened and she leaned in.

"So… you're... in?" she whispered.

"Listen, Pansy, I don't want to talk about this anymore."

"Oh, that's okay," she giggled, "We can do other stuff too."

Pansy leaned in and pressed her lips against Draco's. He closed his eyes and didn't resist, going as stiff as a statue, even though he really wanted to push her off. The girl wrapped an arm around him and tried to force her tongue in, she tasted like she had just eaten a box of vomit-flavored Bertie Bott's beans.

Draco forced his eyes open to make sure no one else was in the hallway. All of the Slytherins seemed to have abandoned him somewhere on the way to the Common Room.

"Get off of him!" a snarl from somewhere behind him.

Draco whipped around at found himself staring at Potter, despite his best efforts to the contrary.

"Jealous 'cause you can't get laid, Potter?" Pansy asked.

Draco was both grateful that they had been interrupted and indignant at the same time. Who was Potter to tell him what he could and couldn't do?

"Shut up Pansy," Potter said, "you don't know what you're talking about."

"I think I do," Pansy snickered, "you ponce."

Potter's nostrils flared and his eyes darkened to an unrecognizable shade. Pansy smirked and placed a hand on Draco's chest, groping him to aggravate Potter. Draco was getting annoyed, and he tried to shy away from Pansy's touch.

"Stop touching him, Parkinson," Potter ground out.

"Make me," she mocked.

Pansy's eyes gleamed and she leaned into Draco again, crashing her teeth against his in an awkward attempt to enrage Potter.

Potter's eyes turned completely red and he growled a low, angry sound. He whipped his wand out before Pansy could even react, and shot out a stream of curses that Draco couldn't identify. Pansy was hit point blank in the chest and she howled and fell to the ground.

Her hair fell in clumps to the floor and her skin turned a putrid green. She seemed to be literally swelling up and she clawed at the ground for purchase. Pansy turned her head upwards to look at them, before passing out, her eyes lolling into the back of her head.

Potter's eyes glazed over, before finally returning to a normal color.

"She'll be fine," Potter said, answering Draco's unspoken question.

He flicked his wand and she went rolling down the hallway, her stomach swollen enough for her feet to not be able to reach the ground.

"I made sure that she won't remember anything when she wakes up. Her skin will be back to normal, but she's probably going to need to grow some new hair."

Draco was shocked. He had no idea Potter was capable of something like that. Then again, Potter had been acting rather odd lately anyway. He looked at Potter and tried to read his eyes. The raven-haired boy looked almost like he hadn't expected himself to lash out at Pansy either, but his expression was far away.

"Why do you keep following me around, Potter?"

Potter seemed stumped for a second. He ran a hand through his messy hair, and Draco tried not to stare for too long at the calloused hand tracing its path through the wild mane. Potter came back to reality and fixed his gaze on Draco.

"I know what you're up to Malfoy; you're involved with the Death-Eaters. And I know you've done something to me, trying to make me fall for you."

Draco was incredulous, "What the bloody hell are you talking about? You're the one that keeps acting like a freak, following me everywhere, and now you try and turn it around on me!"

Potter looked hurt for a split second.

"_Freak_?"

Draco frowned. He had no idea what to do; he was much better at dealing with hate than with feelings.

"Look, Potter, I don't know what's gone wrong with you, but you haven't been acting normal since you got attacked by the Shadowclaw."

"There's nothing wrong with me, Draco."

"Then why've you been following me? And calling me Draco?"

"Because… look, Draco, I've been thinking about you for an entire week now, and I'm not really sure why, but maybe it's time to end this rivalry."

"What?"

"Well, Draco, you're not evil, I can see that, and we're gonna end up on the same side anyway, because my only real enemy is Voldemort."

"Since when were you mature, Potter?"

"I'm not, Draco. I'm still just a boy, and the whole wizarding world is depending on me to save them, and I have no choice but to do it. Every familiar face from school that I won't have to fight against on the battlefield makes it easier."

Draco lowered his eyes to the floor. There was no way he could befriend Potter, just like that. He had a family to protect, a Dark Lord to please, and an entire bloodline to continue. It was too late to give up his pureblood values like that; and Harry Potter was insane if he thought he could change that.

Draco raised his eyes to stare defiantly into Harry's.

"I'll never join you, Potter."

And with that, Draco turned around and walked back to his Common Room. There was no way he'd ever admit to noticing the sorrow in those deep green eyes.


	4. Chapter 4

Harry was pretty sure he was going crazy. He got irritated way quicker than he used to and every time a girl tried to hit on him he felt sick to his stomach. The only time he ever felt good was sitting behind Draco Malfoy in class. Lately, Draco's scent was really getting to him, no matter how hard Harry tried to ignore his presence. But things were soon going to be different.

There was a Quidditch match tomorrow. Harry thought that his favorite sport in the world would put his mind straight. Maybe he'd cut out of dinner early to go to the field and sharpen his skills for the next day. A couple of steep dives at ridiculous speeds would clear up his mind. Or at least he hoped it would.

Harry shoveled some more chicken down his throat and got up from his table, telling his friends that he'd see them later. He avoided looking in the general direction of the Slytherins and headed out of the Great Hall. Harry practically sprinted down to the Quidditch pitch. He strolled towards the broom shed and could already feel the wind against his face and messing up his hair as he opened the shed's door and flicked the lights on.

The very last people Harry would have wanted to see shot apart from each other and stared wide-eyed at Harry. It was his Draco Malfoy and Blaise Zabini. They had been making out and Draco had a lovely flushed face and a bite mark on his neck.

"The fuck are you looking at Potter?" Blaise asked, once he came back to his senses.

Blaise put an arm back around Draco and sneered.

"What the hell are you doing Draco?" Harry snarled, trying to control his anger.

"I mean," Draco stuttered, "I was just, kinda experimenting, and uh- Blaise said,… cuz' I kept… thinking about someone… well someone else and-"

Draco stopped midsentence when he realized he wasn't making any sense, and it took him that long to get indignant.

"Why the fuck would you care, Potter? I don't have to explain anything to you, ponce, I'll do whatever the hell I like."

Blaise sneered and pulled Draco back towards him, shoving his tongue in the smaller boy's mouth. Draco was hesitant, but he didn't shy away like he had with Pansy. Kissing a boy was… different.

Harry chose this moment to snap. All of the frustrations he had been feeling went to his head and he forgot all about his wand as he charged forward. He punched Blaise in the face, knocking him off of his guard, before throwing him to the ground. Lately, Harry had felt a lot stronger and more agile than he had ever been before.

"The bloody fucking hell, Potter?" Blaise screamed through the blood pouring out of his nose.

Harry kicked him hard in the ribs and then knelt down, banging the Slytherin's head against the floor and holding it there. All Draco could do in response was stare and the only noise was Blaise's pained breaths.

"Listen you sniveling, whiny little bastard," Harry said, "If you ever touch my Draco again I'll cut off your fucking balls and feed them to you, understand?"

When Harry didn't get a response he whipped out his wand and pressed it against the hollow of Blaise's throat.

"You want to play a game, Blaise? It's called, 'How Long Can Zabini Breathe When Potter Incendio's His Windpipe'?"

"Alright, alright you violent barbarian, just fucking leave me alone," Blaise snarled, standing up.

"Now, go back to your room and fix yourself up, don't tell anyone what happened or I'll come after you."

Blaise groaned as he stood back up. He looked like he was fighting tears as he made his way towards the door.

"Hurry the fuck up," Harry snarled, "I need to talk to Draco alone."

"I-I can't walk," Blaise choked out.

"Then crawl."

Blaise shuffled miserably out the door. Harry shook his head and anger stopped clouding his vision. It took him all of three seconds to feel bad for what he had done to Blaise, even if he was a slimy git. Harry turned around and walked after Blaise.

"Hold up," he said.

Harry flicked his wand around and muttered a few incantations that Hermione had taught him. He probably still be sore in the morning, but the pain was gone, and the damage was minimal.

"You're going to fucking regret this, Potter," Blaise said icily, now that he was back in a less vulnerable state.

Harry snorted and didn't bother responding to what he considered an empty threat and went back into the broom shed, locking it behind him. He looked around and saw that Draco was huddled in a corner, apparently cowering from Harry.

Harry took a step forward and Draco brandished his wand.

"Don't come any closer," the blonde boy said, "or I'll hex you. I swear I will."

Harry put his wand away and waved his hand, effectively disarming Draco.

"Calm down, Draco, I'm not gonna hurt you, I just want to talk."

"Stop calling me that, Potter!" Draco screeched, "I can snog whoever I want to and there's nothing you can do to stop me."

Harry kept coming in closer. He had no idea why he felt this way about his enemy, but he felt some sort of possessiveness with Draco that he couldn't put his finer on.

"The only reason you let Blaise kiss you," Harry intoned, "is because you've been thinking about me, and you know that you can't help yourself from wanting me."

"No! I don't like you," Draco shouted, "You're a stupid Gryffindor, and my father-"

Harry opted to quiet him with a kiss. It was gentle at first, but became rough and ravishing soon enough, as he fighted for dominance with Draco. Draco moaned and leaned back against the wall, he had an arm around Harry and was slowly but surely submitting to him.

"Stop!" Draco gasped, "I'm not a faggot like you."

Harry frowned, still pinning Draco to the wall with his hips and a hand on either side of his head.

"Don't talk like that, Draco."

Draco hissed and decided that baiting Potter as he always did would work the best.

"You have no right to call me Draco, you half-blood scum, it's a good fucking thing your parents died because they'd be ashamed to see who you fancy, even your Mudblood mother wouldn't approve."

"You don't mean that," Harry said, sounding hurt.

"The Dark Lord is gonna kill you and the rest of your Muggle-loving friends, Potter, and I'll be there when it happens you fucking faggot."

Harry's eyes flashed red and he raised his hand, striking Malfoy across the face. Then he grabbed him by his collar and heaved him up to eye-level.

"Don't say that, Draco, you belong to me and you'll treat my friends with respect," he hissed.

But Harry stopped immediately when he saw Draco's reaction. He had scared the boy shitless. Draco's eyes were red and he was apologizing and crying and trying not to look Harry in the eyes. Harry realized that his blood-red eyes had probably scared Draco and let go of him.

"Hey look Draco," Harry said, "I didn't mean to scare you, I just can't control-"

"No!" Draco screamed, "No! No! No! You hit me, you bastard. You're a fucking freak with a temper problem."

Harry didn't realize how much hitting Draco had affected him. They had gotten into physical fights before, but it was different now. Draco was cupping a red hand-shaped mark on his face and still sobbing. Something primal surged forth in Harry; a need to protect his mate, a need to comfort him and quiet his sobbing, an uncontrollable urge to get rid of Draco's pain, and a horrible and overwhelming sense of guilt.

"Please! I didn't mean to hurt you! I won't do it again, just say you'll be with me and I'll-"

"Get away from me!" Draco screeched backing away from Harry and towards the door.

"Please don't leave Draco," Harry said quietly, "I need you."

But Draco couldn't hear him over his sobbing. Something deep inside the blond boy told him that he wasn't supposed to get hurt like this. Another part of Draco told him he was a proud pureblood and shouldn't be sniveling like this. And yet another part, a small, but still growing part of him, told him to go to Harry, that'd he'd find protection in the taller boy's arms, but Draco was good at ignoring the quieter voices in his head.

The aggressive part of Harry's mind turned off, and he stood there staring at Draco with a pleading look in his eyes. He wanted to say something, but he didn't know what, and he didn't know why. All Harry knew was that he wanted to wrap his arms around Draco and never let go.

Draco interrupted the silence with another sob. Turning on his heel, Draco flung the door open and stormed towards the castle, refusing to turn around, and still holding a hand over his hurt cheek. He choked back his tears and tried to put on a brave face as he marched into Slytherin territory.

He knew that his father wouldn't approve of whatever the hell was happening to him, and by the fucking Gods, Draco didn't really approve either. Draco was supposed to marry a respectable pureblood girl and produce an heir. It wouldn't do to suddenly start fancying men, especially a half-blood like Har-Potter.

Not to mention that the boy in question was the Boy-Who-Fucking-Lived. Fancying the Dark Lord's number one rival would be a suicide move for him. There was no going back. He'd stay away from that nutter Harry Potter at the risk of his sanity and the Malfoy family's existence. Draco vowed to himself that he'd never make himself appear that vulnerable and that weak to his nemesis again. Mysterious beasts of the Forest aside, nothing could ever make Draco change his mind about Potter.

Meanwhile, Harry put his back against the wall of the broom shed and slid to the floor. He had just blown his chances with Draco. Not that it mattered anyway, though, thought Harry. Draco wasn't a ponce and neither was Harry. Something seriously fucked up was going on, and he knew that Draco couldn't have really been the cause of it.

So much for practicing with his broom, anyway. Harry was too distracted to function. He needed Draco the most right now and the little fucker didn't even want to talk to him. Harry growled and felt a burning in his chest, right where the six claw-marks were. He'd have to fucking fix this. Being attracted to a Death-Eater scum like Malfoy wasn't going to bode very well with anyone. He turned over on his side and summoned a mattress.

Screw going back to dorm. Harry would just put a warming spell and a few locking charms on the place. He had to think about things, and he wasn't in the mood to face his friends right about now. At least this way, Draco and that motherfucker Blaise couldn't use this as their secret fuck-spot. Harry slapped himself in an attempt to stop thinking about Draco and then lay down on his mattress, conjuring a couple blankets and a pillow.

But despite all of Harry's best attempts to convince himself that he wasn't ever going to think about Draco again, his body wouldn't listen. He still went into a fitful sleep, and he still dreamt about his Draco. They were holding hands and laughing, and didn't have a care in the world. Harry moaned out in his sleep and reached for a blonde boy that wasn't there.

At least in his dreams he could be happy.

* * *

**Sorry for the hiatus, guys, gonna finish this story if it kills me. :) Please review, thanks!**


End file.
